Forum home Problem solving
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

Orange tree

Hi all, for the first time I left my orange tree in my greenhouse over winter.
Stupidly, I left it, and it now looks like this. 
Can anybody recommend if this can be treated or is it dead?
Thanks

Posts

  • CeresCeres Posts: 2,698
    It's dead. You could try the "see if it's still green" test just to make doubly sure. I do this by gradually lopping off stems until I reach something that looks as though it might still be alive, that has a hint of green in the stem. Others scratch a bit of bark to see if the layer underneath is green. Sadly I don't think you will find anything other than dry, brown wood.
    I have lost a lot of plants this winter, things that have weathered low temperatures over several cold seasons but that couldn't cope with the prolonged sub zero periods this winter. It's a lesson to us all to not take things for granted and to maybe take things indoors or have a supply of rooted cuttings just in case.
  • philippasmith2philippasmith2 Posts: 3,742
    It certainly doesn't look too clever :/  You may have got away with it in the GH if it had been in both a more suitable container and soil and with a bit of protection ( a fleece cage or similar ) but without knowing your location, difficult to say.
    We all make mistakes and this last 12 months have seen off a lot of things what with the drought, the wet, the freeze and so on.
    I'd suggest you do as @Ceres has advised as well as tipping the plant out and looking at the roots and the base of the stem.  Got a feeling you may be disappointed tho.
  • Nanny BeachNanny Beach Posts: 8,719
    Unfortunately oranges are much more tender than other citrus. We're se corner of the UK,mild,10 minutes from the sea
     Our calamondin  and mandarin stay in the conservatory. Lemons, grapefruit,in south facing green house, bubble wrapped,extra bubble wrap over them, making a small area in the green house,with 250w tubular proper Greenhouse heater
     In the beast from the east, even with this protection,they lost their leaves,it was -12c for 2 days and nights, unheard of here, but they all grew back in spring. Remove the leaves, scrape a bit of lower bark off,see if there is any green,if yes, give it a drink, rain water, not gin.
  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    edited April 2023
    My unheated greenhouse went down to -5ºCfor long periods this winter. Fortunately my lemon was in the bright garage.   Winter 2020-21 I kept it in the greenhouse for the brighter light.  It went down to -5 but quite briefly.  It survived but preferred th garage.

    It looks very dead.

     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
  • Hi All,

    See below an update on my orange tree!!


    It survived!!

    Although I'm pretty in experienced with situations like this, so I don't know if I should re pot it or not, and if all the roots are alive or wether there's new baby roots... 

    And I don't know if should cut the original tree off so it has more space to go a trunk

    What would you guys do?

    Thanks again for all your replies!!


  • CeresCeres Posts: 2,698
    I'm pleased your little tree has proved me wrong.
  • I wouldn't do anything to it until it's recovered a lot more.
  • Make sure you keep it watered, damp not waterlogged for this year then next year repot in fresh compost and a slightly larger pot. It will take a year or two to fully recover but lucky you.
Sign In or Register to comment.